Know you're free to come alive
by AlittleKlainer
Summary: Dalton Klaine AU. Set around the time of Kurt's season 2 transfer to Dalton. After years of facing torment at McKinley, Kurt finds himself the newest student at Dalton Academy. With a new gorgeous roommate, a set of brand new friends and a teacher who cares, life at Dalton seems pretty great. But even the sunniest day can turn into a storm.


Know you're free to come alive

**A/N I'M ALIVE ! First of all, if you are reading I've Been Thinking and are awaiting the update which was promised in May, its still not coming. I have no idea where the story is going so for the time being. . . Its going nowhere. ****I have wanted to try a Dalton fic basically since I started writing fan fiction! Basically this should be AU but there may be a possibility that little bits of season 2 episodes may feature. ****This is the first time I've finished a chapter in AGES so I'm quite proud of myself. Claps for Chloe. I seem to have a habit of starting new fics when I know I'll have no time to write more. I go back to school on Monday and prelims are in a few weeks so there wont be any update for a while but. . . I'm here! And there will be one at some point in the near or distant future.**

**This I my first update in a while so I haven't had a chance to put this up before now, ****the glee family have suffered a terrible loss. Even though I have never particularly liked Finn as a character, I fell in love with Cory years ago. I still am having trouble realising that he is really gone. No one should have to go so young. Us fans may fight, but times like this show that when it comes down to it, we really are just a big family. I am proud to say I am a glee fan. So, despite this being a Klaine fic, I would like to dedicate this story, as well as my other past, present and future writing to the memory of Cory Monteith. I will never forget you Cory.**

**If you have read anything else of mine, you will be familiar with how I work, **_**bold italics **_**are thoughts, italics are like stuff that's happening (like reading stuff) and bold is emphasis.**

**I DON'T OWN ANYTHING THAT LOOKS FAMILIAR !**

_Open your eyes  
And know you're free to come alive_

_You gotta live it while you can  
We only get one life . . ._

. . .

_**Breathe. In and out, in and out. Good. Well done. Walk. Put one foot in front of the other. Left foot, right foot, left foot, right foot. Good. Open the door. Place your hand on the door and push it open. Good. Breathe.**_

Kurt's mouth hung open in awe at the beauty that stood before him. Crystal chandeliers hung at intervals from the high ceilings. The walls were covered in intricate paintwork. Down the hall, the foot of a large spiral staircase could only just be seen through the sea of bodies that moved swiftly through the wide hallways.

_**Wow.**_

The boys seemed to all be moving in the same direction. Without any clue where he was supposed to be going, Kurt slowly eased his way into the crowd and began to follow. He felt his heart rate speed up as he entered the group of boys, many of which were much larger than himself. He drew his bag further across his shoulder and curled slightly in on himself protectively. No bullying policy or not, Kurt had endured enough in his life to know that if they were intended to, things could go unseen. Even though he knew that being at Dalton would be much safer for him than McKinley, he couldn't help but allow a small part of his mind to worry about the torment that could come with a school full of teenage boys.

The crowd began forking to the left and soon, Kurt found himself standing at the doors of a large cafeteria packed with loud, excitable students filling rows upon rows of long tables. Kurt stopped and looked around the area, hoping to spot a teacher among the sea of red and blue blazers and find out where in the world he was supposed to be. He contemplated asking a student but most were either stuffing their faces with food or talking in large groups and Kurt knew all too well that large groups of boys usually meant extra hands filled with slushee cups just waiting to throw the cold, flavoured ice in his face and ruin his new favourite outfit. He hated that he was so paranoid but facing years of bullying and torment for just being himself had given him plenty reason to justify being on the edge when faced with Feeing more nervous by the minute, he exited the hall and figured he'd just walk around and hopefully a teacher would spot him. He began walking back up the corridor where he thought he'd came from but the school was so huge that every was beginning to look the same. He spotted the spiral staircase which he had seen when he walked through the door. He began up the stairs, realising that he hadn't came across a classroom yet and figured he was already lost so he might as well explore the school. Kurt had only climbed a few steps before he heard the footsteps of someone approaching behind him and felt a soft hand tapping him gently on the shoulder.

"Excuse me, are you ok?" asked a voice from behind him. Kurt turned around slowly and faced the owner of the voice. A boy who looked to be about his age but was a few inches shorter was standing on the step below him. The boy had dark hair gelled tightly to his head but Kurt could still make out curls through the gel. A pair of bright, hazel eyes stared up at him and Kurt's breath caught. This boy was gorgeous.

"U-um, no, actually, I think I'm a bit lost. I'm new here". Kurt hated the way his voice shook but the boy seemed not to notice. Instead he smiled brightly.

"My name's Blaine". He extended a hand. Kurt shook it before replying.

"Kurt". He couldn't contain the large smile that suddenly appeared on his face. "I just transferred this morning. I think I'm supposed to go the headmaster's office to get my schedule and room allocation but I wasn't sure where it was and I couldn't see any teachers. I figured since I was already lost and late that I'd just walk around and explore the school a bit in the hope that I would stumble across it or someone would come and rescue me". Kurt shrugged and Blaine laughed slightly to himself.

"Well, fear not as I have come to your rescue". Now it was Kurt's turn to laugh. He stepped down so that he was on the same step as Blaine. Blaine continued. "Up there," He pointed up the staircase, "are most of the classrooms. The floor above too. And down here," he pointed to the ground floor "are some more plus the cafeteria, the gym, and all of the offices, including," he smiled again, "the headmaster's office". Kurt repeated all of the information in his head, committing it to memory to avoid getting lost later. Blaine was looking at him kindly, smile still firmly in place on his face.

"Thank you. You've literally saved me." Kurt looked at the ground. "I don't mean to be rude or anything but would you mind showing me to the office? I know its lunch and you've probably got friends waiting for you and you don't need to give it up to show the new kid around and-"

"Kurt stop." Blaine cut him off kindly. Kurt looked up nervously at him. Blaine was still smiling and Kurt let out the breath he didn't realise he'd been holding. Blaine continued. "Of course I'll show you to the office. I was the new kid last year and trust me, I know how easy it is to get lost in this place". He nodded towards the foot of the stairs, urging Kurt to follow him and began slowly walking down. Kurt followed and Blaine began guiding him in the opposite direction from the cafeteria. They walked in a comfortable silence, Blaine allowing Kurt to take in every detail of the building.

"Where are the dorms?" Kurt asked, remembering that they were not pointed out in Blaine's brief audio tour. Blaine stopped and turned slightly to face the way that they had came. He pointed down the hallway.

"Do you see those doors down there? Just passed the cafeteria?"

"Yes".

"The dorms are just through there. They're in a separate building because so many of us board. The common rooms are there too, one for each year".

"Do you board?" Kurt asked, smiling.

"Yes. I don't live too far away but my parents' jobs require them travelling a lot and it was just easier for me to be here full time". They settled back into their comfortable silence until Blaine stopped outside a large office. They passed a secretary who only looked up long enough to allow Blaine to nod politely at her before she dropped her head back to her work and continued typing. Blaine strode towards another wooden door and knocked swiftly. Moments later, a middle aged man with greying hair and kind eyes was revealed.

"Ah, you must be Mr Hummel. I was worried that you were lost". He smiled at Kurt before turning towards Blaine. "I see you met Mr Anderson already. Thank you for showing Kurt here". He nodded to Blaine politely before beckoning Kurt inside the office. Blaine began to turn to leave.

"No problem sir, see you around Kurt". He smiled again before exiting the office, leaving Kurt staring after him. Once Blaine had disappeared from sight the headmaster cleared his throat, awakening Kurt from his trance. He stepped inside the office an the headmaster closed the door. He beckoned to one of the comfortable chairs which sat opposite his desk.

"Please, Kurt, take a seat". Kurt complied and set his bag on the floor as the headmaster took his seat on the other side. He pushed some papers towards Kurt who picked them up and glanced over them briefly. "These are your schedule and your dorm allocation. We tried to match with the subjects you took at McKinley as best we could and I'm sure there were no problems. Transferring mid-semester can sometimes be difficult to find space for a student to board straight away however, luckily for you, you are the first new transfer since one of our other students left the school so you will be taking his room. You will have a roommate. I hope that's OK?" Kurt nodded. "I'm sure you two will get along". The headmaster smiled again and leaned forward in his chair. "I know what happened at your last school and I want you to know that I wish for Dalton to be a safe place for you. We take our zero tolerance for bullying policy very seriously and if you ever find that you have any trouble at all, just know that my door is always open". Kurt looked into the headmaster's eyes, searching for any sign that he didn't mean it. He found none. This man genuinely cared about his safety. Kurt took a deep breath, collecting himself. He couldn't believe that after years of being ignored by the people who were supposed to make his school life safe, he had finally found a teacher who actually cared about him. Sure, Mr Schue was a great teacher but he never really understood what Kurt was really feeling or noticed what was happening until Kurt was out the door and headed for Dalton. It was a little difficult to take in.

"T-thank you sir. You. . .you don't know how much it means to hear you say that".

The headmaster continued to go over various details, making sure everything was in order with Kurt's transfer. After some time, he stood and retrieved a file from a cabinet in the corner of the room. From the file he produced a key card and handed it to Kurt.

"This is your dorm room key. Room 2.06. Floor 2. You are free to go up just now as I assume you have a lot of unpacking to do. You will begin lessons tomorrow. Last lesson has just begun so you have some time before your roommate joins you. Do you know where the dorms are?"

"Yes, Blaine pointed them out to me when he showed me here. Thank you sir, for everything". Kurt stood and followed the headmaster to the door. As he left, the headmaster spoke again.

"Your welcome, Kurt. I mean it, if you ever have any trouble feel free to talk to me and we will do our best to help you". He stepped back inside his office and Kurt took that as his cue to leave.

"Thank you sir, I will". He began heading to the door, nodding to the receptionist in the same polite manner Blaine had as he went. Once he was in the hallway, he tried to remember which way he had come in. He stopped and looked around for a moment before he saw the doors which Blaine had pointed out led to the dorms. Once through the doors, Kurt found himself standing at the top of a few stone steps, at the bottom of which was a short stone path leading to another building the same as the school with another set of the same large doors. He pushed them open and found himself in a large entrance hall which had many corridors leading off of it and a large staircase to the right. Kurt retrieved his key card from his pocket and studied it carefully, looking for direction as to where he was to go. A small, folded piece of paper was clipped to it. Kurt unfolded it and read.

_Student: Kurt Hummel_

_Room: 2.06_

_ (level 2, room 6)_

Kurt glanced at the staircase before checking his card again. Once concluding that that was where he was to go, he began slowly climbing the stairs. The walls were covered in many old paintings and pictures of what he assumed to be were clubs within the school. He could make out a football team, a basketball team and many other sports, as well as a range of other clubs and teams . He stopped at the last picture which showed a group of blazer clad students huddled around a large trophy. Each of the boys was smiling hugely and many had thrown their arms around each other in what looked like celebration, and, right in the centre of the picture, holding the trophy, was Blaine. Kurt read the description under the picture.

_Dalton Academy Warblers, Regional Winners 2010_

_**Huh **_

Kurt thought to himself. Blaine was a warbler. The New Directions had lost to the Warblers at Regionals the previous year so Kurt had seen them before. They were amazing. Probably the best show choir in the state behind Vocal Adrenaline.

Kurt continued up the stairs until he reached another landing marked Floor 2. Like the previous floor, the hall had many corridors leading off of it and another staircase leading to the top floor. He picked the first corridor and began searching the halls to find his dorm. After some time, he stopped outside a door marked number 6. Producing his key card from his pocket again, he swiped it into the slot.

_Red light_

He tried again.

_Red light._

Again.

_Red light._

"Open!" Frustration growing by the minute and after many failed attempts at entering, Kurt angrily rammed the card into the slot one last time.

_Green light._

"Thank you. Was that so hard?"

_**Oh great I'm talking to a door now. **_

Taking a deep breath, he grasped the handle of the door and eased it open. He took in the room in front of him. The room was a generous size for a boarding school dorm. Not too large but big enough to allow for two people to live there comfortably. A reasonable sized window occupied the right side of the back wall with a bed pushed against the back left. The other bed was about half way along the left wall and two desks sat against the right. Two closets sat in the corner on one side of the door and two sets of drawers occupied the other side. There was another door about half way along the right hand wall which Kurt assumed led to a bathroom. Kurt's luggage sat in the middle of the floor. His dad was dropping it off so Kurt didn't have to carry it with him when he arrived. Someone must have brought it upstairs for him while he was talking with the headmaster.

The wall surrounding the bed pushed to the back was littered with various posters and other things so Kurt assumed that the bed in the centre was his. The room looked clean and Kurt was thankful that he wouldn't be living with someone who left everything at their feet. That was at least one argument he didn't need to worry about having. He walked over to his bed dropped his bag onto it. He then proceeded to open each of his boxes, checking that everything was in order. He looked sceptically at the two closets, dreading the limited space he would have to squeeze his clothes into. He figured he may as well start there, knowing that it would take some time to make the little wooden box hold all of his clothes inside.

. . .

The closet space had not been as bad as he feared. He was just finishing putting the remainder in the drawers when he heard a key being swiped into the door. He walked back over to his bed, waiting on the arrival of his roommate. He really hoped they'd get on. He didn't want to spend the rest of the time until he graduated sharing his living space with someone who hated him. It was bad enough sharing a school with them. He heard the handle being pushed down and the door cracked open. He held his breath. . .and immediately let it out at the sight of the person in front of him. Blaine. Blaine was his roommate.

Blaine looked just as surprised as Kurt did. Both boys stood, simply staring for a few seconds. Both processing this new certainly not unwelcome turn of events. It was Blaine who first broke the silence.

"Kurt? You're my new roommate?" He asked, smiling hopefully. Kurt tried to make his mouth work but no sound was produced. He opened and closed his mouth before he was finally able to produce one simple word.

"Yup".

Kurt sat back onto his bed as Blaine closed the door. He couldn't stop the satisfied smile that appeared on his face.

This was gong to be an interesting year.

**A/N TADA! First of all, I don't know if I'll keep this title. I might keep it as this or change it to either, 'It's Time to Stand Up and Fight' or 'Turning Page'. If anyone has an ideas please tell me. **

**Like I said before, I don't know when the next update will be. It's taken me 4 days to write this because of studying so it could be next weekend, or it could be February.**

**Bye for now.**

**AlittleKlainer.**

**P.S. Please follow my twitter Clo (underscore) CrissColfer and my tumblr toungetiedoverthreewords (dash) .com.**

**It never works when I put my twitter and tumblr on here ! **


End file.
